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Rave About Your Rack Please do not post retail SPAM.

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Gear questions? 25-Oct-2011 At 8:34:03 AM Mike Bee

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I've take the whisperlite instead of the Reactor, personally. Shellite, what white gas is called over here is reasonably easy to buy, and the whisperlite gives you the option of frying up bacon and eggs or other such tastys when you're having a rest day at Araps.

I'd go with the Clip CD in preference to the Firstlight out of those two tents, because as mentioned, having the option for mozzie net only would be nice. That said, if you're not looking to do any hiking or the like, leave them both behind, and buy a cheap $40 free standing dome tent over here. That will suffice for Araps and general car camping without having the sun roast the crap out of your good tents.

Rack sounds perfectly suitable. If you've got Offset nuts, definately throw them in. I find them invaluable at Araps. There is a bit of aid to be done, mainly at Mt Buffalo (NE Victoria), but I wouldn't spend time doing it in Australia if you're coming over from the US.

Trekking poles will depend on how much you rely on them. I've a massive fan of them for overnight walks, and approaches over scree etc, but I've never wanted them for walks to crags in Australia. Certainly for Araps, Moonarie and the parts of the Grampians and Bluies that I've climbed at, I haven't felt a need for them. Of course, the Gramps and Bluies are huge areas, and I'm sure that there would be some cliffs that they might be good for.

Sleeping gear sounds reasonable. If you're hanging around into our winter you might want something a tad warmer. Frosts are quite common, and even now in late october (closer to summer than winter), the forecast overnight temps at Araps/Gramps are 3-4 deg celcius.
That said, within a couple of months, we'll likely be getting some nights that you won't even want a sheet over you, let alone a sleeping bag.
I'd probably think about buying a cheap foam mat over here to protect your fancy lightweight thermarest from spiky stuff. It'd be a shame to put a hole in it simply car camping at a crag.